Hannah Alexander by Keeping Faith

Author:Keeping Faith
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Warm droplets scattered across Victoria’s bare arm, waking her. She looked up to see Heidi hovering close, eyes red, face wet and dripping. “No yarrow root.” She sniffed and hiccupped. “I’m so sorry, Dr. Fenway. I can’t find it anywhere. I found some sassafras and chopped it up, put some whiskey in it to make a poultice, but it’s gonna feel like you been set on fire.”

“A little pain’s better than bleeding to death.” Victoria had managed to remove the damaged chaps from her legs and rip the wool material from around her wound before passing out to the sound of Heidi’s footsteps racing after the animals.

Sometime while Victoria had been fighting the effects of blood loss, Boaz had returned and nosed her to let her know he was there; true to Joseph’s promise, Boaz would never leave a wounded rider. Even the man’s animal was of excellent quality, and was a natural leader, it seemed; the bray of Pudding’s irritation came from somewhere nearby.

Heidi brought up her carefully prepared medicine and hesitated. “What if I don’t do this right?”

“Heidi Ladue, you just hush and do your job.” Victoria winced when she tried to move. “A real doctor would never say that in front of a patient.”

Despair crossed her young charge’s face.

“Do your job, Doctor,” Victoria snapped, resisting the urge to comfort the girl. If she wasn’t firm, they could both be in trouble in this wilderness.

Heidi’s blue eyes widened. Grasping her handful of medical mash as if it were gold, she leaned forward and gently placed it into the gash on Victoria’s thigh.

The fibers dug into open flesh and the whiskey dripped into the wound, sending fire throughout Victoria’s body. She grabbed her jacket and bundled it against her face to smother the sound as she cried out against the pain.

Then came the sound of ripping fabric and gentle hands lifting her leg as Heidi ignored Victoria’s cries and did what she knew to do. Victoria knew she had taught the girl well when she felt the bandage tighten just enough, but not too much, when she heard a soft sob, and felt again the gentle drips of warm tears on her skin that somehow soothed the streaks of hot fire deeper beneath her flesh.

“Tie it firmly, several knots.” But there was no need to give directions. And that was good, because Victoria thought she might be sick. Her vision darkened around her, and she couldn’t tell if clouds had covered the sky or if she was losing consciousness.

Sometime later—Victoria couldn’t tell how much time had passed—the cold tip of a bottle touched her lips. When she tasted whiskey she closed her mouth against it, shaking her head.

“I brought extra on Bacon, and you need it now to kill the pain. There’s no laudanum.” Heidi sounded self-assured all of a sudden. “Ma always said pain could be the best killer, and I can’t lose you. I don’t know where we’re going, and we can’t go back now.”

The girl was right, of course, if a little less diplomatic than Victoria would have wished.

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